By Joshua Franklin and Oliver Hirt
BERN (Reuters) - Switzerland urged U.S. officials to consider the global importance of UBS and Credit Suisse in a recent meeting ahead of potential fines for Switzerland's two big banks over claims they mis-sold mortgage-backed securities, a top Swiss diplomat said.
Like with German rival Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is looking into whether UBS (S:UBSG) and Credit Suisse (S:CSGN) mis-sold residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in the run-up to the 2007-09 financial crisis.
News broke last month the DOJ had demanded a $14 billion fine from Deutsche, far more than analysts had expected and raising fears UBS and Credit Suisse could also face stiffer penalties. Deutsche has said it will fight the size of the DOJ fine.
In a meeting with representatives from U.S. regulators, the Federal Reserve and the banking sector, Joerg Gasser pointed out the significance of UBS and Credit Suisse to the banking system.
"I emphasised to the officials the importance of the Swiss financial center for the global financial architecture and the systemic relevance of both big Swiss banks and their international importance for financial stability," Gasser, head of the State Secretariat for International Financial Matters, a branch of the finance ministry, told Reuters on Thursday.